Remnant's Master of Shadows
by Firestorm808
Summary: Stained by his past, a young man wandered Remnant for years trying to find purpose with his new identity. He became a new stronger person, but at a price. He grew cold in his solitude, finding peace with only a few people he met along his journey. To further unlock the secrets of his abilities, he returns to where he first started his training, Patch.
1. Trials

**A/N: I finally finished the first chapter of this. I'm not sure whether or not to put this under crossover. Although I will be taking elements from League of Legends, I wont be taking the exact characters from the game. Some of the original cast will show parallels with a few champions. If anything, champion names would be aliases for a few I have in mind. I got the idea to incorporate elements like this from A Silver Dolphin's"** **Jaune Arc, Kingsman Agent."** **As of writing this, I have already seen up to season 3 episode 11. I wont plan too far ahead until I see the season finale. I hope you enjoy the first chapter. If you do, please follow and review. See you guys next chapter. Check out my other story if you have a chance.**

Chapter 1

Trials

* * *

"Nobody is immune to darkness, nobody is a saint. Everybody is corrupted one way or another, even the ones who look so innocent, the ones who swore they are pure; they are lying themselves. Without light, there's no darkness. Without darkness, there's no light. And without a balance, there's chaos." - oOXperyaOo

Amidst the frozen forest, a figure made its way North. His entire body was concealed by his suit and armor. Under his charcoal chest piece, he donned a red hood with a gold trim that reached to his upper arms, lower back, and right thigh. On his back rested two large curved steel shurikens about half a meter in diameter. Dark metallic shoulder pads and forearm guards seemed to be his only other protection. The rest of his attire consisted of black boots and gloves but most notably, his helmet. A large golden V-shape went from the bridge of the helmet's nose to the upper forehead. The lower half of the helmet consisted of vertical slits. The eyes gave off an intimidating glare. The glowing red lenses were reminiscent of Grimm's. Grimm were attracted to negative emotions, but there was something different about this man. While he would still be attacked by matured Grimm, smaller Grimm such as minor nevermores and beowolves would ignore him. His essence was expertly masked that it took much more skill to detect.

After an hour of walking, he finally reached his destination. In front of the man stood a small temple. It had been ages since he came back. The pillars and walls still held the red oak color, and the door remained locked and decorated with golden spheres. The roof on the other hand had seen better days. Erosion had caused some of the shingles to fall off. After concluding his mental examination of the place, he pulled out a key, and he opened the front doors. Inside, the room was lined with candles along the walls. The center of the room had a large mat, used for training among other things. He walked across the room to a stone altar where a taijitu symbol decorated the back wall. He reached into his cloak and pulled out a book, placing it on the altar. The man sat cross legged on the mat, and he began to clear his mind of all thoughts. The book emanated a black miasma, and a slight chill entered the room. The miasma swirled around the book, and began to flow around the man. In response to the energy entering his body, he bowed his head and stated, "I am ready for the next trial." The illumination of the room slowly sank into darkness.

* * *

The man opened his eyes once more, observing his surroundings. He noticed that he sat in the middle of a forest clearing, surrounded by cherry blossoms. He could feel the freshly scented air with every breath. He stood up, and he noticed an oddity. He was no longer in his armor. A young man no more than 19 years of age, stood where a dark and ominous warrior should have been. He reached for his face, and combed through his unkempt blond hair. Other than his peach skin, what stood out from his face mask was his eyes. They were a shade of deep blue that rivaled the oceans. Accepting his current state, he sighed, wondering what test he would have to complete now. A large breeze swept through the area carrying a trail of pink petals with it. By intuition, he decided to follow the wind, hoping that he would soon find his answer.

* * *

After a half hour of following the wind, he reached a small ruins. The stone pieces were overgrown with bright green grass. The pillars and arches were lined with runic symbols, signifying its importance. At the center of the ruin, a white altar was stationed with a new set of weapons and armor. Assuming that these items were for him, he put on his new gear. The blond was now adorned in a white ninja outfit that covered his entire body. His forearms and waist were wrapped in blue cloth. Similar to his previous armor, he had a leather chest piece and armor plates on his shoulders and forearms. His black boots were replaced with simple sandals with leather shin guards. Two ropes around his armpits held two large triangular **Razor Shuriken** in similar size to his previous pair. A white hood and face mask left only his eyes seen. A metal headband was wrapped around his forehead. After tightening the last bits of his armor, a surge of electricity surged through him causing him to feel rejuvenated and his eyes to glow.

* * *

What happened next was to be expected. The clouds blocked out the sun, and cherry trees slowly darkened. The breeze carried these newly covered petals into miniature whirlwinds surrounding the small ruin. The petal density of each spiral increased. Once the man saw that he could no longer see through each once. The whirlwinds swept the petals away leaving a darkened version of himself in his previous armor. The blond exited the ruin and approached the copy. His copy slowly walked toward him as well until they were 20 meters apart. The blues eyes stared at the copy examining his body language. Once he got a good look, his eyes narrowed.

' _To defeat your opponent, one must defeat yourself first I suppose.'_ he mused.

As the blond flicked his arms, pronged blades, about a half meter long, shot out of both arm guards. The copy did the same, but small curved blades also extended from the sides of his arm guards. Like previous trials, his powers would be suspended to test his skills. Both fighters, weapons ready, waited for the other to make the first strike. A female's voice began to echo in the blond's mind.

' _To strike first would be like showing your hand first without knowing what the opponent has in store. If you're at a standoff against an unknown assailant, wait for them to lose focus. You can tell by reading their body language such as eye movement and muscle contractions.'_

' _Even in death you find a way into my life...Thank you.'_ He thought to himself

Even if this was a mental construct in his head, any mind can be distracted one way or another. The wind began to pick up, petals dark red petals dancing all around the clearing. The clouds began to rain down upon them, signaling that a storm is occurring. The standoff lasted five minutes while still getting drenched by the rain. Suddenly a bolt of lightning struck the top of the ruins, causing the copy to flinch and look at the incident. His opponent's focus faltered, now was the time to strike. Throwing two shuriken, he dashed toward the copy with the intent to kill as there is no reason to hold back. The enemy regained composure and sidestepped the thrust to his abdomen. In order to conserve momentum, the blond immediately spun. With almost eerily silent effort, he spun his upper torso from left to right, swinging both of his arms around to slash all around him. The opponent raised both arms blocking most of the slashes with the blades and guards, scratched in only armor. The copy countered while the blond's spin slowed down, throwing a multitude of shurikens.

' _If you're about to get hit dodge. If you can't dodge, deflect. If you can't deflect, block.'_ the same voice echoed.

The blond crouched instantly, dodging them as they disappeared. The copy then raised its arms to block the incoming flying kick. The man in white kicking off to flip over in the air and landing with fines. The two ninjas then rushed each other, their blades clashing blow for blow.

The boy jumped behind his copy. His double expected it and turned around to see the boy thrusting his right hand at it, blade extended, while his left hand went over his shoulder. The duplicate blocked his strike, but that was what the boy wanted. He threw his shuriken with his left hand in a way that it acted like a boomerang, and the Shuriken came flying at the copy. The copy had quick reflexes too and instantly moved to the side, the shuriken just grazing its side, drawing a miasma. The original charged forward, using his Shadow slash. It was a direct hit as the copy fell back as it clutched the cut the boy inflicted on its stomach. It wasn't deep, but it was leaking many shadows. The boy advanced on the armored man. "It's over." he said in his deep, silky voice, flexing the fingers on his right hand as his blade extended. Lightning fast, the copy suddenly kicked upwards, striking a direct blow onto the young man's chin. He grunted, the kick making him stumble and lean backwards.

' _A fight's not over until the other is dead'_ a different woman's voice echoed.

"Always the rough one of you two." He mumbled to himself.

They once again stared down at each other in the blowing wind.

Both figures charged each other at the same time, once again exchanging blows, but the blond was heading back into the defence. He was constantly getting hit, bocking as much of the damage with his blades and guards. The copy went for a dual downward slash. Using the space between his blades, the boy caught the attack, but the copy pressed him to his knees. The boy immediately glared at his opponent and smirked.

"Time to end this!"

With as much force as he could buster, he twisted both of his arms shattering the enemy's left blade and twisting the enemy's right arm. With the other blade still held with his left arm, the boy immediately stabbed his right blade into the copy's eye sockets. He didn't stop there. After two stabs to the head, he plunged his blade to the gut and finally the heart. The clone laid there in pool of black miasma. The boy stood there in victory, yelling to the sky as the dark cherry blossoms soon began to swirl around him.

"I have won! I have passed! I have survived!"

He took a deep breath and looked down to his literal shadow.

"You fought well, but I dictate what happens in my life. I know what I am, but I will fight to my last breath for my freedom."

The blossoms so becan to cover his entire body. As he exited his mindscape, the forest grew bright, and the petals settled down. The colors didn't change as there were a mix of the dark and bright petals, but the scene was beautiful none the less. His vision faded, and he opened his real eyes to the inside of the temple. As he was about to leave after packing up his belongings, he turned his head to the sound of howls and gunshots.

* * *

 **A/N: I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. If you did, please follow and review. See you guys next chapter.**


	2. The Last Rose of Summer

**Author's Note:** I'm sorry that it took me a month to update. To be fair, this is the longest chapter that I have ever written. You asked for a longer chapter. I gave you a longer chapter. Once again, college takes up my writing time, but here it is. I hope you enjoy the second chapter. If you do, please fav, follow, and review. I forgot to give credit to **yinyuming** on deviant art for the cover art. Please check out his other works. He's really good. After watching the season 3 finale, I have ideas in mind. Although the length chapters will depend whether or not I am able to get all of my thought written about a certain scene/event, I do plan on adding more content to them.

 **Review Responces:**

 **we the clones:** Yup. It's him, but I won't be calling him that until much later in the story. For now he will go by aliases.

 **Karlos1234ify:** Thank you.

 **AnimeLover137:** Thank you for liking the concept. I plan on having him hiding most of his skills since they are unique to him, and they would be reveal his identity and past to others. Like in the summary, he will be cold to most people. He has issues connecting with others due to events that I will soon explain. He can be hostile depending on the context of the situation, but not too extreme. I'm still not sure if I should add a revenge element. I have some ideas in mind if I do. I made this chapter longer just for you. You're welcome.

Without further delay, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 2: The Last Rose of Summer

 **5 Minutes Earlier**

The snowy night is illuminated by the moon's pearlescent glow. A young woman in a black dress with red trim and in a red hooded cloak slowly walks toward her destination. She finally stops and stares at a tombstone near the edge of the cliff that the person is standing at. Her cape constantly flows to the winter breeze, producing dozens of fluttering rose petals. She stands deep in thought, focusing only on the object in front of her. Bowing her head in respect, she walks away from cliff and stone. Her pale skin and black hair are the only distinct features not hidden from the hood. Across her waist is a belt adorning a silver crucifix.

The stone reveals a rose symbol and the inscription "Summer Rose - Thus Kindly I Scatter".

The red-hooded wanderer slowly treks through a snowy forest with each tree showing signs of permafrost on their trunks. In the surroundings, shadowy beasts quickly dart through, and an black blur shoots over the treeline. She soon arrives at a clearing. Looking from left to right, she is unfazed at the sight of around a dozen black-coated, red-eyed Beowolves circling her. Three decide to dash forward and pounce on the seemingly fragile target, but the figure disappears in a swish of rose petals. The creatures crash to the ground, confused for a second, and their senses detect the being above them.

Outlined by the moon's light, her cape swirling around her body, the young girl is no longer hidden by her hood. Her eyes were a bright silver, and her hair was black but with red tips. She reaches behind her, pulls on the device around her waist. She spins to her right while unfolding the contraption into a large rifle. She strikes a pose and readies her gun. The gun begins to collect energy and, with her first shot, blows the right hemisphere of a Beowolf's head out in a burst of blood-red smoke. As the now lifeless body slams to the ground, the Beowolves begin their assault.

As she lands, she front flips over the first beast and shoots it in the back of its head. Mid front flip, she twirls in the air, blasting another one in the left chest cavity. Twirling again, she rolls into a sitting kneeling position, and shoots another approaching threat in the right of its gut. She rolls backward and stands, unfolding Crescent Rose into its larger - and deadlier - scythe form.

One of the braver Beowolves goes forward, but Ruby merely spins, hooks its body in the curve of her blade, smiles as the monster growls, and fires the scythe. The recoil has the blade slice the creature's body in a shower of petals. Both halves land on the ground, continuing to bleed roses, and the rest of the pack charges.

* * *

After jogging through the sleepy hollow, the armored man finally makes it to the treeline of the clearing of gunfire and howls. 'Sheesh, who beside me would be this far out of civilization? ...Huh?' His eyes behind the mask merely stared at the cloaked figure as she finished her swing.

"...Summer?" he whispered. In his vision, the color of the cloak continuously flickered between red and white.

* * *

The girl, rotating the weapon, unloads her spent bullet and drives the blade into the ground. She fires a single spot at several approaching monsters until one swipes at her feet, narrowly missing as she jumps up with Crescent Rose and blasts back, digging the scythe into the ground again. Her grip allows her to flip and land her feet on the handle of the weapon. At that point, she sees more creatures emerging from the woods. A Beowolf almost gets her with its claws, but she twists out of the way, fires at a monster in front of the barrel. The recoil allows her and the weapon to spin away, and she kicks at the one she dodged before. She twirls the scythe and cuts down Beowolves from both sides. She dodging another attack, hooking the blade on its neck, and blasts its decapitation.

Two more creatures engage. After, weaving through a few slashes, she hooks the blade around the stomach, and fires. The shot kills the creature close behind, and the recoil once again decimates its prisoner. A flying dislodged top half knocks another to the ground while more are in pursuit. She leaps over two and goes in to dismember an arm and leg of one, forcing it down. She catches another's neck in her blade with her landing on the beast's back. The creature growls before she pulls the trigger. The blade shoots upward from the recoil and beheads the beast in a reverse guillotine fashion. She backflips into the air and sees two Beowolves jump at her. In response, she shoots her way toward the ground. She slashed and fires at the first, jumps by using the beasts body for footing, and shoots down to gain more air time for the second. She dismembers the second's left arm in a downward swing. Raising her weapon parallel to her body, she blocks a ground wolf's swipe, which pushes her back. Slowing down by digging her scythe lets her see the large number of enemies left. Nodding, she drops her previous cartridge, inserts another with a cross symbol, loads it in, and blasts off at a higher speed than ever before, coming at the dumbfounded Beowolves like a rocket when she converts the scythe to a sickle-shape and spins her way through the mass, cutting up and down, left and right, leaving bullets, rose petals, and blackened body parts flying into the air. She disembowels them quicker and quicker until the last one falls, she blasts into a jump, and lands in a pose with her scythe hanging behind her as bullets rain from the sky.

* * *

At the sight of the graceful massacre, the young man looked in shock. The clearing was riddled with decaying corpses and bullets. "That skin, that hair, that...hood. I-It can't be. How? I-I have to talk to-."A loud chorus of screeches from the north end of the clearing interrupts his thoughts.

Minor Nevermores fly over the girl's clearing and away South.

'What was that all about?' she thought.

"That doesn't sound good" he said aloud.

At that moment, a large rumbling is heard. The trees north begin to shake, and more animals begin to scatter. The ground shakes more and more each second.

 **WRRRRAAAAAARRRR!**

At last, a bear like creature revealed itself as it crushed the trees that got it its way. It was an Ursa Minor. Much like the Beowolves, they had black fur and bony spikes on their backs and arms, as well as white, bone-like masks with red detailing, but are much larger and stockier.

'Oh no...The fight must have woken the Ursas from their hibernation, and the howling beowolves must have alerted them of humans. This is bad.' the boy mentally concluded

"Crud, I'm low on ammo. I didn't expect to encounter older Grimm. I also used a lot of my aura on that last attack, so I don't have enough to use my semblance." she muttered to herself, trying to maintain her composure. Eleven more Ursa Minors began pouring out of the woods, and apparently, they saved the best for last when two larger Ursa appeared. They were Ursa Majors. Like its smaller counterparts, they have bony spines and a skull mask with Grimm markings, but also possesses many bony plates on its back and limbs.

* * *

"They say that the older Grimm are, the more bone growth they show. Those wolves she fought were barely mature." The image of a woman in a white hood repeatedly flashed in his head. "...Oh no. No. No. No. No. No. ...I can't lose you. ...I can't lose you again. ...Not again!" He immediately jumped out of his tree and sprinted toward the hooded girl.

* * *

Meanwhile

'...Yang...Dad. I don't want to go. I never got a chance to say goodbye.' She gritted her teeth tight. "...I'm not leaving my family like mom did. ...I won't let them go through that again." she whispered to herself with her head lowered. She narrowed her silver eyes, and began to glare at the approaching herd. She took a deep breath and readied her weapon. She held it tight with a burning grip. Expressing her steeled resolve, she yelled. "I will not let you take me away from them!" She dashed ahead with scythe in tow. Once she reached the first Ursa, she decapitated it on the spot. As the body fell, two more appeared in front of her. She twirled her weapon in order to gain momentum and swung at the arms of the Ursa on the left. As the limbs fell off, a loud yelp was made, but the creature continued its pursuit on its hind legs. The blade continues its curve, and nailed the armless Ursas head to the ground. The Ursa on the right charged, but she fired her rifle at its left foot, launching her body a few meters away. Taking aim, she fired two consecutive rounds into the previously injured Ursa. One to weaken the face mask and another to complete the penetration. That was three down, but there are still nine more Minors and two Majors Left. She had limited ammo, so she needed to make them count.

She ran and slided into a crouched in front of the Minor. She swung her scythe around one of its stumpy legs, and pulled the trigger. In an instant, the beast fell forward more aggravated than before. Although Ursas are strong, they still lack in speed. The still functioning bear swiped at the girl, but she blocked it with the body of her weapon. Taking a step back, she rotated her blade in order to build momentum. Once she was ready, she jumped and slammed the tip of her scythe right into the the downed beast's left eye. It squealed in pain as the bladed pressed further and further through the bone plating. She pulled out when she knew the beast was dead. Her body finally getting back into the swing of things smirked at the remaining Ursa. Twirling her blade, she decapitated and dismembered the remaining of the pair and another stray Ursa.

 **GWWWOOOOAAAARRRR!**

"What?" she whispered to herself. The Ursa Majors stood tall, as if now taking charge. The next thing she knew was that she was surrounded by the Minors. They were able to get the jump on her while she was distracted by the Majors. Each took steps closer, hindering any escape. "How did they get so organized? I thought only Beowolves acted in groups." She once again swung her blade at the closest Ursa, embedding itself deep into its stomach. Pulling the trigger, ...nothing happened. "What?! My baby's jammed." 'Not at a time like this.' She didn't have the necessary strength to pull the scythe straight out, and she could no longer blast it out as she intended. The stabbed Ursa glared at the girl for attacking it. She could have sworn that the Ursa gave off a demonic smile before it raised its right arm. It brought the arm down with ruthless strength, slamming right into the girl's chest. Luckily, she had enough aura just to absorb most of the impact; however, she was left immobile without the strength to move.

The Minor walked up to the girl, and opened its jaws. It leaned in as the girl could only watch the mouth close in on her. 'Someone, save me! ...Please!' she mentally cried. She closed her eyes as the jagged teeth were an inch away from her face. A moment passes, and nothing happened. 'What happened? Am I already dead?' confused yet grateful at the current situation, she opened her eyes. A pronged blade was pushed further, protruding out of the Ursa Minor's mouth. It went through the back of the head and held the mouth open. The weapon was pulled out, and the corpse fell before the girl. The girl's eyes widened at the scene.

The warrior looked back at the fallen woman and back at the crowd of Ursas. Only one thought came to his mind, and he released it for the world to hear.

 **"I'M GONNA MURDER YOU ALL!"**

* * *

On the ground with eyes struggling to stay open, she tried to comprehend what was happening. A strange man in armor just saved her life, and he was somehow going to kill all of them. Who he was and why he was here were the first to questions that came to mind. The figure sped off toward the pack in a black blur. 'Cherry blossoms?' Her stamina got the best of her, and she blacked out.

* * *

The man glared at all of the Ursas, and in an instant unleashed a flood of killing intent. This caused the beasts to stagger. There are not many individuals who are able to cause such intimidation. The warrior ran up to one, and stabbed it in its gut. The beast began to raise its claws to counter attack only to stop when an blade pierced right through the center of its chest. Both in pain and confusion, the Ursa turned its head to see a black figure reminiscent of the warrior in front of him. The original, with a hidden smirk, looked into the fading light in the creature's eye and whispered. "Fear the shadows." The beast head immediately fell off. In two nearby trees, two trails of smoke came from fading shurikens. He allowed the the dead hunk of meat to fall, satisfied with the results.

'Five Minors and two Majors huh. ...Just like old times' A grin crept under his mask. He dashed toward four Ursas in close proximity. As he comes between two Ursas, a wisp escapes his body and materializes into a clone of him between another pair of Ursas. Like a literal man and his shadow, both entities, rotated at high velocity with blades extended, shredding the Ursas apart piece by piece.

As he walked onward, he could see the last Minor cowering in fear. He knew that his ruthlessness and killing intent would strike fear in many. The two Majors the size of a small house narrowed their eyes at the man who decimated six of their kin so easily. The warrior got in a ready stance, and both parties continued to stare each other down. 'Reminds me of my test, …but with two very large bears. ...Huh.' He looked behind him back at the fallen woman. 'Better make this fast before she succumbs to hypothermia.'

He sprints toward the duo. The nearest Ursa slams its paw at the man. At the last second before contact, a wisp shot forth, and the warrior appeared in mid air. Looking back at its paw, it realized that a dark copy was left in its place. Blades ready, the man shot toward the beast's head. Reaching behind his back, he threw a shuriken along with his shadow directly at the eyes. Before it was able to growl in pain, the warrior plunged his left arm blade deep into its throat. He repeatedly thrusted his right blade into the bear's skull, piercing the protective plating.

The titan collapsed backward in death, and the man finally released his blades from their mark. The final showdown has come.

 **GWWWOOOOAAAARRRR!** was the only response.

He looked at the last one standing fifty meters away, and with a icy glare he said aloud, "Embrace the shadow... or die in darkness!"

Both sides charged toward the center. The Major raised both of its front paws, and slammed it down on the ground. This time, it created a large wave of snow heading toward the man. In response, he jumped over the wave. The Ursa however planned on that and was already in mid swing with its next attack. The warrior did not expect such a plan, but he was able to brace the brunt of the attack, getting knocked on his back. 'Looks like I finally got a real fighter. ...Too bad I have to kill you even worse now.'

 **"DEATH MARK!"**

At that moment, he dashes through the major, leaving a shadow behind. Two more shadows appeared, and both including the original charged at the beast, slicing off both of its arms and stabbing it in the back. Both shadows faded away leaving only the first. The warrior then sent out another nearby, and all three Shadow Slashed, ripping off both legs and disfiguring the chest cavity. The Ursa cried out in excruciating pain, looking at its soon to be executioner with wide eyes. For the finishing blow three shuriken flew threw the air, and all that was left was silence. A second later, the head rolled of the body began to fade from existence. The deed had been done.

* * *

 **Fifteen Minutes Later**

He had taken the liberty of bringing the woman back to his temple and setting up a fire to mitigate the cold. During this time, he finally got a good look at her. He immediately knew that she wasn't Summer, but she shared a resemblance. She had the same exact distinct physical features as Summer, especially the eyes. The main contrasts were her age and the red cloak. He mentally sighed at his recklessness. 'Summer is gone. I should have known, but I somehow held onto the hope that she wasn't. ...I better prepare an explanation for later.' He walked to the other side of the room, got comfortable, and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

 **Eight Hours Later**

He was the first to wake up, and in preparation of her awakening, he decided to brew some jasmine tea. The girl in the red hood soon began to stir, and she rose up from her futon, rubbing her eyes and yawning. She took a look

"You're awake. How are you feeling?" he asked, handing her a cup of tea.

She hesitantly took the cup and inspected it for second before drinking. "I'm starting to recover. Not to be rude, but where are we?" As innocent as she was, she was still warned by her sister to be careful of creeps.

"We're in my temple. I overheard the fight and went to investigate. You collapsed, so I helped bring you to safety. Please believe me when I say that I have no ill intentions." he answered calmly. He kinda figured that waking up to a strange man in a mask would raise questions, so he had to diffuse that situation beforehand. "On another note, you're not Summer Rose, are you?" he stated with a slight downcast tone.

'He's mannered. I'll give him that. He hasn't done anything suspicious, but I should still be cautious.' "You're not mistaken. My name is Ruby, Ruby Rose. Summer Rose was my mother."

'Was…' he sighed. Thinking back, 'Summer did mention once that she had daughters'.

"How do you know my mom?", she asked considering his familiarity with her mom's name.

"She's... an old friend," he solemnly replied. "I haven't seen her for so long, not since … the incident."

"Oh...You were with her on the mission?" Ruby never really knew much about her mom since she died when Ruby was still young.

He looked down in response to the question.

'I'll take that as a yes. He knows Mom, so I guess that's a good sign.' Ruby thought. 'If he wasn't there last night, I would be just like her, gone.' Her mind perked up when she remembered. "I almost forgot. Thanks for saving me."

"Don't worry about it." he replied not looking directly at her. He didn't help people often, but this was a special case.

'He really misses Mom. I-I think I know what to do.' "Would you like me to take you to her?" She believed that he needed some closure on his relationship with her mom. The same thing happened to her and her family when she found out about her mom's death.

He blinked at the question. 'I never did find out where she was buried.' "I think that would be nice. Lead the way I suppose." They packed up their belongings, and Ruby led the man to the cliff she was at the previous night.

* * *

 **Fifteen Minutes Later**

They finally arrived at the cliff.

They stopped near the treeline, and Ruby spoke first. "There she is." She pointed toward the tombstone. "I come here often to talk to her about what she missed while she is gone. I'll let you have your time with her." She wants to respect his private moment.

He slowly walked up to the stone, still contemplating on what to say to her after all this time. 'I suppose that I'll take it a step at a time. Once he reached the front of the stone, he sat cross legged, and he began. "Hello Summer. It's nice to see you again. As you can see, I'm wearing the armor we designed together. I added some new pieces as well. It's saved me more times than you know. When you... left, I started traveling. I still continued my 'special training.' I know. I know. You have your opinions about the book. You took me in when I was on the edge. If I hadn't met you after my time in Menagerie, I don't know what would have happened. We had some great times: training, missions, just talking. I miss you so much." He started to get teary eyed under his mask. "With all that I lost, you were one of the few things that kept me together. I'm so sorry. If only I was stronger, then you wouldn't have gotten hurt." He looked down towards his hand and clenched them. "I won't let our time together be in vain. I will grow stronger to keep what I hold dear. If anyone gets in my way." He glanced toward his gauntlets. "They won't be there for long. I wish you peace and serenity wherever you may be." Turning his head around, he saw Summer's daughter still standing there, staring at the sunrise. "Don't worry about her. She can handle herself well enough, but she still has much to learn. I still have that gift you gave me, but I feel that I know who it should really go to. It is nice talking to you again. Just like old time. I'll see you again Summer. Wish me and your family the best."

He walked back to the young girl with a much more positive feeling than before. "I want to thank you for your help in this matter. I really needed this." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a metal rose emblem. "Here. I want you to have this. It belonged to your mother. She gave it to me before…" He trailed off.

Ruby's eyes widened at the object, and she was speechless. That emblem brought back what pleasant memories she had with her mother. Taking it slowly, she held it to her chest. Somehow, holding onto this piece felt like Summer was still here with her. A safe and secure feeling wrapped around her. Her eyes began to water in a mixture joy and sadness. "I can't thank you enough for all you have done. You saved my life, and you brought back a piece of my mom." Pulling away her cloak to reveal her belt, she took off the silver crucifix. Holding it out to her new friend she asked, "Please, take this. Something to remember me by."

"Thank you for your kindness." he said as he graciously accepted the gift. He looked back at the orange sky with the risin sun. "It is time that I must go. Goodbye and take care." He turned around and walked to the edge of the cliff side.

Ruby realized at the last second that she forgot to ask for a crucial piece of information. "Wait. You never told me your name."

"They call me Zed. Till we meet again" At that instance, his body slowly dissipated away in a mixture of shadows and cherry blossoms.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** I took some creative liberty of the shadow powers. Please leave a review with any suggestions for plot elements like characters, powers, events, and items. I hope you enjoyed the second chapter. If you did, please favorite, follow, and review. See you guys next chapter.


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